From left, Lagos State House of Assemby Committe Chairman on Education, Sanni Okanlawon; Finland Ambassador to Nigeria, Leena Pylvanainen; Secretary to the Lagos State Government, Mrs Folashade Jaji; Commisioner for Education, Mrs Folasade Adefisayo; Country Director, British Council, Mrs Lucy Pearson; Special Adviser to the Governor on Education, Mr Wahab Tokunbo; Vice- Chancellor, Pan Atlantic University, Lagos, Prof Enaze Okenedo; and others at the 2022 Lagos State Education Summit held at Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island, on Tuesday. Photo: Tunbosun Ogundare
The Lagos State governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Tuesday, reaffirmed that the number one service on the priority list of the state government to render to the people of the state is the provision of a quality and value-driven education system.
He gave this revelation in his remark at the 2022 Education Summit organised by the state government where he spoke via a digital platform.
He said the state government particularly his administration strongly believed that putting the education sector in the driver’s seat among other sectors of the economy and getting things done properly would genuinely bring about the desired socio-economic prosperity to the state and Nigeria by extension.
Speaking on the theme of the summit, “Creating a sustainable fit-for-purpose education model,” Sanwo- Olu said Lagos State is very passionate and committed to its T.H.E.M.E.S Agenda with education and technology among the six cardinal areas that will drive the state to achieve its 30-year development plans project.
He said education is not only the best legacy to bequeath the children but actually one of the strongest tools to end poverty and hunger.
He said that was why his administration has invested hugely in education at all levels and also provided enabling environment for private operators to thrive and make the system an all-inclusive one.
He said evidence has shown that all these efforts have yielded tremendous results using improvement in the performance of public school students in the state in WASSCE from less than 40 per cent to 80 per cent within three years of his administration and also its zero target project on out-of-school children, good welfare package for teachers, among others as yardsticks.
He said though all three state-owned universities are having steady academic calendars as their lecturers are not on strike, he is particularly disturbed that the strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities(ASUU) could drag this long.
He said it is high time the differences between the Federal Government and ASUU are resolved so that students who are idle at home now for more than six months could go back to classrooms.
He thanked the state ministry of education for organising the summit and all the resource persons and other participants for joining the state government to move the education sector forward appreciably.
In her welcome address, the state Commissioner for Education, Mrs Folasade Adefisayo, said the essence of the summit was not to identify problems facing the education sector in the country nor dwell on discussing them as they are not new but to discuss solutions that are practicable to bring about the desired change.
She noted that Lagos State was not concerned only about learning outcomes where students strive just to pass examinations again, but how to prepare them well with the right knowledge and skills that will enable them to overcome odds and make a great impact even before graduation.
The lead speaker at the event and vice-Chancellor of Pan Atlantic University, Prof Enaze Okenedo said quality education is no longer about knowledge acquisition but about the values to bring into its application in terms of good character, ability to think creatively, solve societal problems, collaborate, engage in teamwork and technology savvy among others that are more important.
She said she believes the outcome of the summit would be put to use both by the government and the private sector back home.
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